The Normal Heart - Review

Recently released on HBO and amongst the Hype of ‘Game of Thrones’, ‘The Normal Heart’ follows along a gay activist during the 1980’s as he fights to bring HIV into awareness. Riding along the back of ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ it was not going to be long before Hollywood started to cash in on the HIV train. However, surprisingly enough this little piece of film history was delicately delivered via HBO instead of the silver screen. Why? Because HBO does not have any qualms on the way they present their materials and indulge in taking risks, I mean, c’mon have you seen Game of Thrones...

Mark Ruffalo is the lead within this flamboyant filled tale of strife and awareness, delivering what can be seen as just scraping along the lines of awkwardly acceptable, and if the start of the film doesn’t have you convinced that Ruffalo can pass as a Gay man, then you better keep watching as HBO tries its hardest, and there is no holding back.

TV is more along the lines of taking risks within the Hollywood sector, as Films come and go, rise and flop, yet TV can adequately recover from its misfortunes… However within this day of age, HIV and Aids awareness is such a touchy subject that only few have dared to take on. We have had ‘Philadelphia’ and now the latest ‘Dallas Buyers Club’; yet no one has really taking it fully head on quite like ‘The Normal Heart’. With TV, audiences are susceptible to what they watch and the channel is easily flicked over, however audiences these days are looking for more and more of a challenge to process and that is exactly what this film processes. To the modern era, we as an audience are still uncomfortable without familiarity, however change is set to be dawned upon us, and this film is quite the eye opener in terms of how the next generation of portrayal will be processed. There are no boundaries within filmmaking and the older age has been shaved, placing us within the modern era of script.

This film will be screened on SoHo and in select cinematheque’s this month and if you are in for a whirl of engagement, process and progress – then give it a nudge.

I give it a solid and deserving 6 out of 10

Reviewed by Mase Shaw - Follow Mase on Twitter @MaseShaw